Roth says he was walking on Roadway Drive in New Orleans July 6, 2009 when he fell into a 4-6 foot hole that had been dug as part of an excavation project. He claims the hole had no warnings signs or safety measures to indicate its presence and was in direct violation of OSHA standards.

The defendants are accused of negligence for failing to post warning signs and provide adequate lighting, failing to warn the public of potential hazards, creating a hazardous condition, failing to provide a reasonable path to avoid the hazard, failing to adequately secure a work site and failing to follow proper safety precautions in an excavation site.